Good Tuesday morning, Alexandria!
⛅ Today’s weather: Partly cloudy throughout the day. High of 47 and low of 35.
☔ Tomorrow: Rain throughout the day. High of 51 and low of 36. Sunrise at 7:21 am and sunset at 5:21 pm.
🚨 You need to know
Gary Oelze, longtime owner of legendary music venue The Birchmere, has died at 80 years old, Zebra first reported.
Oelze was hired as a manager at a restaurant in Shirlington that would reopen as The Birchmere in 1966. It was a successful lunch business, Zebra wrote, but Oelze added the music focus to boost nighttime business. Oelze even played in the restaurant’s first band.
Over time, the venue would grow to become legendary in the music world and continues to be Alexandria’s most prominent musical venue.
REST IN PEACE GARY OELZE FOUNDER, LEADER, FRIEND 1943-2023
OBITUARY: Gary Oelze, 80, Visionary Owner of The Birchmere Music Hall, Dies https://t.co/eRA0MoCVUj
— The Birchmere (@thebirchmere) January 23, 2023
📈 Monday’s most read
The following are the most-read ALXnow articles for Jan 23, 2023.
- Notes: Widening planned for Alexandria and Arlington portion of Mount Vernon Trail (975 views)
- With Alexandria seeing more residential development conversions, city leaders discuss pushing for greater ‘voluntary’ contributions (595 views)
- Alexandria teachers want smaller classes and bigger raises (534 views)
- Bonaventure puts former Del Ray gas station and office space on market for $3.3 million | ALXnow (364 views)
🗞 Other local coverage
- New Deli to Open on King Street in February
Alexandria Living (Monday @ 10:28 pm)
- Dr. Vivek Sinha Informs Public About Prevalent Winter Respiratory Illnesses
Zebra (Monday @ 9:51 pm)
- Birchmere owner Gary Oelze dies at 80
Alexandria Times (Monday @ 9:37 pm)
- Local Surrealism Tattoo Artist Welcomes Miami Guest Artist to Studio February 18-25
Zebra (Monday @ 8:50 pm)
- In Need of Special Education Teachers, ACPS Partners With GWU for New Program
Zebra (Monday @ 4:40 pm)
- Why Does History Matter? Send Historic Alexandria Your Thoughts in Annual Survey
Zebra (Monday @ 3:29 pm)
- OBITUARY: Gary Oelze, 80, Visionary Owner of The Birchmere Music Hall, Dies
Zebra (Monday @ 3:07 pm)
- Some Alexandria Services Moving To New Mark Center Facility
Patch (Monday @ 3:01 pm)
- Collective Bargaining Agreement Funds Up For City Council Approval
Patch (Monday @ 10:50 am)
🐦 Tweets of note
Ting is authorized to place their infrastructure in the City's public right-of-way. Equipment cannot be installed on private property without expressed consent from the owner. For concerns regarding Ting Internet, please submit an Alex311 Service Request; https://t.co/Wbj5WSsowA pic.twitter.com/4vnJU6B3Lf
— Alexandria Transportation & Environmental Services (@AlexandriaVATES) January 23, 2023
📅 Upcoming events
Here is what’s going on today in Alexandria, from our event calendar.
- No events today. Have one to promote? Submit it to the calendar.
Recent Stories

Alexandria Women for Good donated $6,720 to Alexandria’s Community Lodgings from their first donation cycle! They toured one of the learning centers, met some of the staff and kids, and handed over a big check.
Alexandria Women for Good is a newly formed local Grapevine Giving Circle composed of local Alexandria women who make the commitment to give back to the local community regularly and intentionally. Each quarter they raise money to give to local nonprofits making a difference.
For more information visit: https://www.grapevine.org/giving- circle/3y6h4Ay/Alexandria-Women-for-Good

Hi, my name is Moneim Z., and I am a blind male with chronic kidney disease, who needs a living kidney donor for a transplant. My blood type is B+, and I can accept a kidney from individuals who have blood types B and O.
To read my story, please see the attached letter.
To contact me directly, please email me at [email protected] or call at 571-428-5065. My living donor coordinator at INOVA Hospital, Amileen Cruz can be reached at (703) 776-8370 , or via email at [email protected]
Thank you!